OASIS DREAM RIDING HIGH AND IT COULD GET BETTER YET
Article taken from Racing Post, Bloodstock World by Martin Stevens
Young Juddmonte sire OASIS DREAM has been in conspicuously good form all season; he has been represented by 55 individual winners across Europe, and his progeny have won stakes races over a variety of distances – from the 5f of the Listed Land O'Bums Stakes that Sugar Free won last month, to the 1m 31/2f of the Lingfield Oaks Trial won by Midday.
This week Arcano was a convincing winner of the July Stakes and Misheer impressed when landing the Cherry Hinton Stakes, giving OASIS DREAM a juvenile Group 2 double - as well as a runner - up spot for Main Aim in the Darley July Cup - at the Newmarket July festival.
Judging by OASIS DREAM'S progeny entries this weekend, his hot streak shows no sign of stopping. In this afternoon's Totesport.com Summer Mile at Ascot he is represented by four year-old Aqlaam, who is bidding to win for the first time since he beat Il Warrd by two lengths in last year's Jersey Stakes. The colt, whose year-younger Sakhee half-brother Curacao is set to contest the 1m4f handicap at Salisbury tonight, looks to hold every chance based on his promising third behind Paco Boy in the Queen Anne Stakes last month.
However, he faces stiff opposition from the likes of South African challenger Imbongi, a son of Russian Revival, whose biggest payday came in the 1999 Tote International Handicap at Ascot, and Ascot specialist Cesare, a son of Machiavellian who is closely related to Prix du Jockey Club runner-up Nowhere To Exit.
Not long after the Summer Mile at Ascot, another son of OASIS DREAM, Captain Gerrard, is set to line up for the Listed Toteswinger City Wall Stakes over 5f at Chester.
He has not won since May of last year, when he captured the Palace House Stakes, but he has plenty in his favour, having finished fourth in the King's Stand Stakes last month, and has a handy stall four draw. He will do well to peg back the redoubtable Borderlescott, the highest rated runner by Compton Place, who is even better drawn in stall two. In the Darley Irish Oaks at the Curragh tomorrow, Midday seeks to turn the tables on Sariska, who outpointed her at Epsom, to become OASIS DREAM'S second Group 1 winner after last year's Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere hero Naaqoos.
On known form the pair should take all the beating, but on pedigree’s Ballydoyle raider Roman Empress should not be ignored. She is by Sadler's Wells, the middle-distance Classic sire par excellence, and is a sister to Derby runner-up The Great Gatsby. She was thrown in at the deep end against older fillies in the Pretty Polly Stakes last time on the back of a lowly maiden success, and did well to finish less than seven lengths adrift of Dar Re Mi.
Date: 11 July 2009